Earlier this year, over 200 cities across the US and Canada scrambled to put together attractive recruitment packages, tying tax and other incentives with narratives on workforce and quality of life, in an attempt to land the prize of the decade – the $5 billion dollar “second headquarters” for Internet giant Amazon.com.
The prize comes with 50,000 well paying jobs and a tremendous economic boost.
Mansfield and Richland County did not meet criteria for consideration, although four larger Ohio cities did enter — Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati/Dayton, and Toledo. The north central Ohio area may still be able to benefit, for on Thursday it was announced that Columbus had made the list of 20 cities that Amazon would officially consider in “round two.”
Amazon.com is no stranger to central Ohio. Currently, some 4,600 people work at company facilities in the Columbus area in two fulfillment and three data centers. The proposal put forth by the city brought together several parcels of land in various inner and outerbelt locations, including near The Ohio State University, on the Scioto Peninsula/Franklinton, and by Easton Town Center.
Other cities making the list are:
- Atlanta, GA
- Austin, TX
- Boston, MA
- Chicago, IL
- Columbus, OH
- Dallas, TX
- Denver, CO
- Indianapolis, IN
- Los Angeles, CA
- Miami, FL
- Montgomery County, MD
- Nashville, TN
- Newark, NJ
- New York City, NY
- Northern Virginia, VA
- Philadelphia, PA
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Raleigh, NC
- Toronto, ON
- Washington D.C.
While next steps have yet to be announced, the headquarters is expected to launch operations as early as 2019.
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